It's fairly safe to say that of the soundtracks we're highlighting this year, Octopath Traveler has generated the most buzz. The good kind. Having strong music to support the first new RPG property on the Switch is important, and relative newcomer Yasunori Nishiki has shattered our expectations with this soundtrack. From the jaunty main theme to the various locales and characters you meet, this OST leads you on a fantastic journey. All the moods, struggles, and triumphs involved in a world-traversing quest are reflected in the instrumentation and tonal changes throughout the score, and repeated listens generally improve, rather than worsen, the experience. Music is part of the fabric of the world in Octopath Traveler, and it really shows as location themes are woven into the ending theme. Little motifs, like individual stings for each character before boss fights, compound this impression, so delve in and give it a listen.
Writeup by Hilary Andreff
Therion, the Thief
Octopath Traveler -Main Theme-
Primrose, the Dancer
Also Read/Watch:
Octopath Traveler Original Soundtrack Review
VGMO - Yasunori Nishiki Interview
8-Bit Music Theory - How Octopath Traveler Changes Key
When it comes to Xenoblade Chronicles 2, the one thing we can probably all agree on is that the music is absolutely amazing. Emotional cutscene backing, epic exploration themes, rocking battle tunes, and a wide variety of town themes abound on this 5-disc soundtrack, which came out nearly six months after the game was released. It's not an exaggeration to say that the wait has been 100% worth it: every single person involved in the creation of this music has outdone themselves, and that's quite a feat considering the quality of the first game's soundtrack. Simply put, this is an album that belongs in every RPG fan's collection.
You might not expect the soundtrack for a DLC expansion to fully live up to the music of the main game. Oh sure, it'll be good, but it won't be on quite the same level as the original. But Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna - The Golden Country is that rare piece of DLC where the music is completely on par with the excellent soundtrack from the original game. Frankly, there are a few tracks that are better than their counterparts from the main game, and with the total runtime under 45 minutes, you can get through this 11-track album in one sitting. Brevity is a strength of the DLC itself, so it is fitting that the music also does not overstay its welcome. Then again, it seems impossible for the Xenoblade Chronicles 2 sound team to make bad music, so even if this album was twice as long, we doubt there would be much to complain about.
Toby Fox speaks, and the world stops. Deltarune was the biggest surprise of 2018, but what didn't surprise anyone was the insanely good quality of the music. As a sort of follow-up to Undertale, Deltarune's music feels like an evolution of its predecessor's soundtrack, and it shows just how far Toby Fox has come in the three years since his first full game. There are simple chiptunes dotted throughout, like "The Legend," and various leitmotifs that musically depict each of the characters perfectly, from the mischievous, fast-paced theme for Lancer to the hardcore, rocking electric guitars for Susie. And after you've made your way through the game (which is three hours of heartbreak), you're hit with Laura Shigihara's beautiful vocals. Undertale already cemented Toby Fox as one of the best indie composers around, but Deltarune just proves it even further.
For such a sprawling, open and solemn world, Breath of the Wild needs a grand yet muted soundtrack to go with it. Manaka Kataoka, famous for her Animal Crossing: New Leaf music, and a dedicated team of composers have come up with the perfect album to accompany this gorgeous game. It's a Zelda soundtrack like you've never heard before, with gorgeous, stripped-back arrangements of your favourite tunes. Take "Rito Village," which is a soothing reimagining of "Dragon Roost Island" from Wind Waker, the very game the Rito originate from. Of course, this gargantuan album doesn't just rely on rearrangements, as some of the more eclectic battle themes show. "Talus Battle" sounds just like the kind of music you'd hear fighting a golem-like creature, with a deep male choir opening the music and fast-paced steel percussion following through. It's the perfect album to reflect upon, but also the perfect album to get lost to. So head out, go exploring and take Breath of the Wild's soundtrack with you.
Who doesn't love a lush action RPG/Metroidvania soundtrack? Jeff Ball has created just that with Timespinner. The action remains front and center, but the music still manages to capture a variety of emotions through techniques such as the characteristic Jeff Ball piano trills in some of the more sorrowful pieces. Ball's musical signature helps Timespinner find its own identity as a game; it's difficult to imagine the experience without Lunais marching along to the beat of "Barren Corridors" or "Recounted History." The in-game characters and environments lend something back to the music, too. Battle themes are often extraordinarily well timed with player action, and some of the side characters allow for fun and fresh musical styles you wouldn't otherwise get to hear. Merchant Crow's "Avian Capitalism" makes you feel like you're standing in an outdoor market in France — and why not use that sound for a merchant bird who's not limited by time or place? Set some time aside to listen to this one, because it's well worth it.
It seems like with each expansion, sound director Masayoshi Soken and his music team push the envelope just a bit further with their amazing talents. Heavensward featured some simply wonderful compositions and melodies, but the scope and variety in Stormblood might even surpass the team's previous monumental effort. The dual settings of Stormblood — the desert lands of Gyr Abania and lush landscapes of Othard and the Far East — all but necessitated multiple approaches to the themes of the many new areas and characters, and boy did Soken and co. deliver. Stormblood features some of Final Fantasy XIV's best pensive nighttime themes (see the "Old Wounds" sample for one), which are married to a collection of truly epic primal themes for Susano, Tsukuyomi, and more. And the new dungeon and boss themes? Pure glory. To have composed and arranged hundreds of songs for one game alone and still deliver such memorable music is an achievement indeed.
SEGA's mysterious and creative leap of faith known as Panzer Dragoon Saga has fallen into the extraordinary rare game abyss over the past two decades, which only adds to its curious mystique. A JRPG in a series of rail shooters, Panzer Dragoon Saga is only spoken of in whispers, obscured by an often impenetrable pay wall for a physical copy. For the game's twentieth anniversary, Japanese label Brave Wave published a new, rearranged version of Saori Kobayashi and Mariko Nanba's soundtrack, rewritten by Kobayashi herself for the release. The updated tracks benefit from being free of the Sega Saturn's hardware limitations and are vibrant in their mix of traditional folk music, science fiction synths, and beautiful pianos and strings. Kobayashi perfectly matches the dreamlike glow of Panzer Dragoon Saga's empty, post-apocalyptic skyworld, capturing the energies of robust mountain communities, space opera-sized warship encounters, and the dire struggle to survive on a once hospitable planet.
With every new mainline Kingdom Hearts game, there's also an outstanding new Utada Hikaru song. "Don't Think Twice" is a much more stripped-back song compared to "Simple and Clean" and "Sanctuary," but it has a much more poignant job to do — close out the entire series. The song starts with Utada's vocals and a simple piano and really only picks up the pace halfway through, but the softer tone at the beginning gives us time to reflect on the years gone by, on where Kingdom Hearts started and where it ends. The lyrics in particular capture the themes of Kingdom Hearts so well: "All you gotta do is say the word, the walls will crumble / If you want to make it happen, nothing's impossible." It brings a tear to our eyes now, and by the end of the third game, we're pretty sure this song will take on a whole new meaning.
Stardew Valley's soundtrack is the epitome of peaceful and relaxing. Each season has its own flavor, but every song comes together to form a lovely, laid back soundscape across the entire game. Given the kind of game that Stardew is and the mood its original music already evokes, it was a perfect subject for the piano treatment. The 22-track Stardew Valley Piano Collections smartly contains new renditions of all 12 seasonal theme songs, plus several other key pieces of music. Anyone who has gotten swept up in Stardew knows the sense of home and familiarity the "Overture" (title screen) brings, and from the opening notes of this album, you know you're in for something special. Even if farming isn't your thing, this is easily one of 2018's most relaxing releases, and is absolutely worth a listen when you need to unwind.